Robots with lasers and cameras (but no security): Liberating your vacuum from the cloud

Presented at DEF CON 29 (2021), Aug. 8, 2021, 2 p.m. (45 minutes).

Vacuum robots are becoming increasingly popular and affordable as their technology grows ever more advanced, including sensors like lasers and cameras. It is easy to imagine interesting new projects to exploit these capabilities. However, all of them rely on sending data to the cloud. Do you trust the companies promise that no video streams are uploaded to the cloud and that your personal data is safe? Why not collect the dust with open-source software? I previously showed ways to root robots such as Roborock and Xiaomi, which enabled owners to use their devices safely with open-source home automation. In response, vendors began locking down their devices with technologies like Secure Boot, SELinux, LUKS encrypted partitions and custom crypto that prevents gaining control over our own devices. This talk will update my newest methods for rooting these devices. The market of vacuum robots expanded in the past 2 years. In particular, the Dreame company has recently released many models with interesting hardware, like ToF cameras and line lasers. This can be a nice alternative for rooting. I will show easy ways to get root access on these devices and bypass all security. I will also discuss backdoors and security issues I discovered from analysis. You will be surprised what the developers left in the firmware. REFERENCES: Unleash your smart-home devices: Vacuum Cleaning Robot Hacking (34C3) https://dontvacuum.me/talks/34c3-2017/34c3.html Having fun with IoT: Reverse Engineering and Hacking of Xiaomi IoT Devices https://dontvacuum.me/talks/DEFCON26/DEFCON26-Having_fun_with_IoT-Xiaomi.html https://linux-sunxi.org/Main_Page

Presenters:

• Dennis Giese - Hacker
  Dennis is a PhD student and a cybersecurity researcher at Northeastern University. He was a member of one european ISP's CERT for several years. While being interested in physical security and lockpicking, he enjoys applied research and reverse engineering malware and all kinds of devices. His most known projects are the rooting and hacking of various vacuum robots @dgi_DE https://dontvacuum.me

Links:

• https://defcon.org/html/defcon-29/dc-29-speakers.html#giese
• https://infocon.org/cons/DEF CON/DEF CON 29/DEF CON 29 video and slides/DEF CON 29 - Dennis Giese - Robots with lasers and cameras but no security - Liberating your vacuum from the cloud.mp4
• https://infocon.org/cons/DEF CON/DEF CON 29/DEF CON 29 video and slides/DEF CON 29 - Dennis Giese - Robots with lasers and cameras but no security Liberating your vacuum from the cloud - Live.mp4
• https://infocon.org/cons/DEF CON/DEF CON 29/DEF CON 29 presentations/Dennis Giese - Robots with lasers and cameras but no security- Liberating your vacuum from the cloud.pdf (slides)
• https://infocon.org/cons/DEF CON/DEF CON 29/DEF CON 29 video and slides/DEF CON 29 - Dennis Giese - Robots with lasers and cameras but no security - Liberating your vacuum from the cloud.srt (subtitles)
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWqFxQpRbv8

Similar Presentations:

• DEF CON 26 (2018) / Having fun with IoT: Reverse Engineering and Hacking of Xiaomi IoT Devices
• DEF CON 31 (2023) / Vacuum robot security and privacy - prevent your robot from sucking your data
• DEF CON 31 (2023) / Vacuum Robot Hacking Demo